1. Field of the invention.
This invention relates to the fields of wrist watches and wrist watch bands.
2. Description of the prior art.
With the advent of minaturized electronic components, wrist watches which are presently offered for sale in the marketplace can do much more than just indicate the time. Date or calendar functions are common, and some wrist watches may also be used as calculators, stop watches, alarm clocks, and game machines.
The smallness of a wristwatch, especially the thinness, is an important selling feature as most users want the wrist watch to be unobtrusive and comfortable to wear.
Because of the size limitations, it is often the case that one feature must be sacrificed to provide another. For example, it is desirable to have a large display area. If a digital display is used, the numbers must be large enough to read by a quick glance. For an "analog" display, where the traditional hands of a watch are represented by an electronic display, a large area simulating the face of a mechanical wrist watch is needed. Similarly, to display a calendar, a large display area is needed even if the date numerals are small.
On the other hand, the control buttons required for some functions must also be accessable and will compete for space on the wrist watch. On some watches, the control buttons are placed on the sides of the watch; for others, such as a watch that may also be used as a calculator, the control buttons are usually placed on the face of the watch, thus reducing the area available for the display.
To please those who want the sophistication of the various electronic functions yet also wish to tell time by the position of mechanical hands, hybred watches are available.
In some watches, the limited amount of space for, and thus a limited number of, control mechanisms coupled with a relatively large number of functions has produced a watch that is confusing to operate or is difficult to use.